School Holiday prices, rip off or not ?

We hear about it constantly in the media how the Travel Industry “rips” people off during the school holidays, they take advantage of the new rulings and fines are handed out to parents taking the children out of school for a week or two during the academic year.

What never ceases to amaze me is why does travel get such a bad reputation for this, where so many other industries are doing exactly the same thing, yet its accepted and even sometimes applauded.

Christmas lunch again, back to the several days of planning, shopping , preparation and cooking, only to be over in minutes. So, I decided to have a look around and see what we could do about eating out this year. I quite fancied the idea of getting up at my leisure, no small children any more, having a relaxing morning waking up slowly with the required amount of coffee, then on with the posh frock and out for lunch.

First hiccup, unless you do not want to drink and can walk to your choice of venue a cab is required, triple the price today my dear as its a bank holiday, I can only imagine then that crude oil suddenly triples its price on the 25th of December !

Then along comes the menu’s advertised in all of the local chains, for £8.95 per person with that all important * next to the price. So read the actual price FOR THE SAME MEAL £45.99 per person on 25th of December. So, I understand the staff will have to be paid more, but in any of the jobs I have had in over 30 years of working I have never been paid 5 times the hourly rate, even for bank holidays.

The examples could go on for ever, peak train times, who would even expect to pay the wonderful £6.50 return to London on Virgin trains during peak hours, no one would.

Then why should the travel industry be any different ? Do you agree, or not ?